Water is life. Out of ten Nigerians, three do not have clean water close to their home. One woman is fighting hard to change this. Household by household, community by community, the Clean Water project supports the Nigerian government’s efforts towards bringing clean water into people’s homes. The brainchild of this project is Hajiya Nana Aisha Gambo, currently serving as the National President of the Naval Officers’ Wives Association (NOWA).
When Hajiya Nana Aisha Gambo assumed office, she embraced the new responsibilities with clearness of purpose – to help improve the lives of Nigerians. Her first day of office was marked by providing potable drinking water for two communities that had suffered from the lack of drinking water for years.
As a business woman, leader, and philanthropist, Nana Aisha’s vision is as powerful as it is clear. Bringing clean water into households is among the most essential acts to support development. No longer having to drink dirty water also means better health, which in turn means the chance to stay in school, care for family members and as well as earn a living.
Since assuming office on 27th February 2021, the new president has rekindled the zeal, vigour, dedication and commitment of NOWA members to contribute to development even beyond the borders and confines of the Nigerian Navy formation and barracks. The “Clean Water” project’s desired result is to support government efforts at providing access to clean water across rural areas in the 36 states, including the Federal Capital Territory.
The results so far, are spectacular. Four communities in River State, one each in Delta, Nasarawa, Kogi, Niger and Edo states, 3 each in the FCT and Kano state. Hajiya Nana Aisha says she was touched by the knowledge that a lot of communities in Nigeria still do not have access to clean water.
Women Empowerment.
The clean water project also serves as a women empowerment initiative. With men mostly being the ones charged with earning a living, the burden of collecting water falls mainly on the females in the family. Every day, millions of girls and women take long walks back and forth to their homes only to return with dirty water. Hajiya Nana Aisha’s Clean Water project is working intensively to end this dangerous journey in the coming years.
By ensuring the availability of clean water in communities, the Clean Water project cuts through to inspire changes in individual households across rural communities. In practice, this also ensures that women no longer have to undergo the risks of serious injuries, attacks and assault along the paths they take to search for water in places far away from home. No longer carrying heavy containers helps to reduce the risk of long-term damage to their neck, back and spine, a common injury in rural communities.
The availability of water equally supports the existence of a decent toilet at homes and schools, giving boys and girls in rural communities better chances to complete their education, helping them to break free from poverty, and supporting them to change their lives for good.
Capacity Building
The Naval Officers’ Wives Association, once a small group of women gathering to provide emotional, social, and economic support to wives of naval officers and ratings in and out of the barracks has grown into a prolific and influential association. NOWA now contributes actively to development efforts across different states in Nigeria.
Over the last five decades, NOWA has been keenly involved in several development efforts in the areas of education, charitable ventures, economic empowerment, health and social services. As the wife of the current Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo, Hajiya Nana Aisha is the new President of the Naval Officers’ Wives Association.
NOWA is working on a series of capacity building programs that have enhanced skills acquisition guided to help improve the quality of lives of families and children of Nigerian Navy personnel and their relations.
As the CEO of Framazaz, a key Golden Penny distributor across Nigeria, Hajiya Nana Aisha is channelling her business acumen and years of recorded successes into development efforts to help rural communities across the country. The New President of NOWA brings a wealth of experience into this new era, with a clear and achievable vision, aimed at improving the lives of people and communities beyond the realms of the Nigerian Navy. The Clean Water project is an exciting start, and as they say, he/she who brings water brings life.
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